Prep wrestling: Siscon brothers

Dale Siscon (right), half of the wrestling Siscon

brothers, in referees' corner at the Marauder

Invitational at Mira Mesa High Dec. 10.

(Photo by Ed Piper, Jr.)

By Ed Piper, Jr.

Exemplifying the bond of friendship that exists in the high school wrestling world, Dale and John Siscon are two pint-sized former stars who officiate at San Diego meets.

"How can you tell us apart? I'm more handsome," said Dale, the older of the two by three years. He said his younger brother was the first state champion from San Diego, and he himself was an All-America wrestler. Both competed for Mount Miguel, classes of 1971 and 1974.

Dale, at present, has a mustache. John doesn't.

When John was a ninth-grader, he said he weighed 80 pounds and measured under five feet tall. He bulked up to a massive--I've being facetious--96 pounds by his senior year.

But what a powerpack on the mat each of them must have been. Now, the two referee many high school meets in the San Diego Section. Dale is an inductee in the California Wrestling Hall of Fame, as is Walter Fairley, former vice principal at La Jolla High and most recently interim principal at Lincoln High School.

The testimonies from former wrestlers whom Dale coached are a fitting tribute to his years as a coach. When he moved to Hawaii in the mid-1990's (he later returned to California), the occasion triggered words of appreciation that appeared online.

You can feel the warmth and friendliness. A row of chairs are set along one wall for the referees to take a break on when they're not officiating. To a member of the press he was talking to, who started to get up to make room for other officials, Dale said, "No, make yourself comfortable. You don't have to go."